Kadhafi son says regime will 'not abandon fight'

Moamer Kadhafi's son Seif al-Islam said in a speech aired Sunday that the regime would not "abandon the fight," as rebels closed in on Tripoli and there was fighting and explosions in the city.

Libyans watch Al Jazeera arabic live channel as tens of thousands celebrate what the rebels claim to be the first uprising in Tripoli against the Kadhafi's regime on August 21, 2011

"We have a long breath. We are in our land and in our country. We will resist for six months, one year, two years ... and we will win," he said in the speech broadcast on state television, which said it was made a day earlier.

"We will not submit, we will not abandon the fight," he said. "This is not the decision of Seif al-Islam or Kadhafi but the decision of the Libyan people.

He said the Kadhafi family "has paid the price, like all Libyans," and urged rebels to launch talks, saying: "If you want peace, we are ready."

Four strong explosions rocked the centre of Tripoli early Sunday. Witnesses also reported clashes in several quarters between insurgents and Kadhafi supporters.